The Energy Ministry has held meetings with companies from the main world powers and anticipates over US$20,000 million in investment in Chile.

Whilst drawing up the country’s strategy for the development of a green hydrogen industry, the government is also engaged in an important global effort to build a network of collaboration around the so-called “fuel of the future”.

As part of this effort, Energy Minister Juan Carlos Jobet and InvestChile authorities have held a series of meetings with investors from the world’s main powers. In recent weeks, they have met with potentially interested parties from Canada, China, Germany, Japan,  the United Kingdom and the United States and, next week, will add Australia to the list.

According to Jobet, several companies have already shown interest in coming to Chile to develop this industry. This is in addition to others that already have local operations.

The figures on green hydrogen are quite compelling. For example, forecasts for the present decade suggest an investment of US$500,000 million globally of which Chile could capture around 5% or some US$20,000 million.

“At the public level, we are creating a network of collaboration for the development of green hydrogen, but we also want companies to come to invest and there is already interest on the part of some companies with operations in Chile and others that are not here yet but want to be. The objective is to put the country on the map so that they see it is a very good investment destination. So far, the interested parties have been positively impressed with what we have presented,” said Jobet.

The presentations have stressed Chile’s evident advantages for the development of renewable energies – both solar and wind – that have great potential for the production of green hydrogen which, according to estimates, could generate an export market worth at least US$8,000 million a year for Chile.

Internationally, green hydrogen is forecast to create more than 30 million jobs, playing a fundamental role in sustainable reactivation and energy transformation at a global level, particularly in view of the growing move towards decarbonization.

“According to the International Energy Agency, the greatest challenge facing the world today is to reduce the cost of electrolysis, the process through which green hydrogen is produced with renewable energies, and that reflects the importance given to hydrogen in reducing emissions,” said Minister Jobet.

Meetings with interested parties

The meeting with China included representatives of companies such as Bank of China, China Development Bank, China Energy, Goldwind, Pacific Hydro, Longi, State Grid International Development and Foton Motor while, in the case of the United States, the companies represented included BlackRock, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Walmart, RWE Renewables, Société Générale, EIG, BMW Group, AES Corp, Exxon, BBVA New York, Prime Energy, Finning South America, Rio Tinto and Santander Corporate.

These two countries account for 56% of global GDP. This provides an indication of the expectations of the important investments this industry is seeking to attract. “In these meetings, we talk about Chile as an investment destination and all the advantages it has, emphasizing that it is a stable and growing country that has clear rules and is open to foreign investment. In addition, there is the transformation of the energy sector; the force that hydrogen has acquired is very impressive and investors are realizing that Chile has enormous potential,” added Jobet.

To date, the Energy Ministry has identified more than two hundred companies, investment banks and international bodies interested in learning more about the situation of the Chilean economy and investment opportunities. A seminar on Chile’s green hydrogen strategy is scheduled for November.

Source: El Mercurio